Blind Fate
by Envy 567
Summary: The newest transfer student to the IS Academy is a surprise visitor: the second male discovered to be able to pilot the Infinite Stratos machines, as well as a computer genius, Jason Douglass. His plans for a quiet life with his old friend, however, are soon destroyed when a mysterious group of malignant hackers launches an assault, and Douglass gets caught up in the heat.
1. Douglass

"My name is Jason Douglass, from the United States of America. I have been cursed with the ability to pilot an Infinite Stratos machine. Therefore, I am now here. I am pleased to meet you all, and trust we may become good acquaintances before our time in the school is over. That is all."

Chapter 1

Douglass

When these words were spoken from the newest Second-Year transfer student, not a single sound was made. For a moment, it felt as if time had stopped completely. This had happened twice before, although the second time, it turned out to be a trick.

This time, however, there was no mistaking it. The voice was deep and hard, and the form of the student was unquestionable.

A male.

Ichika breathed a quiet sigh. He already saw it coming that he would be the one to show the young man around, and that meant teaching him about the greatest danger the IS Academy posed: the female members of the student body.

"One...two...three." He counted under his breath, and on three, a huge uproar was made as a large part of the class sprang into action, trying to approach Douglass, get a word of introduction in, see if they could find a way to get closer to him than the others. Ichika watched the whole thing with a worried expression. He still didn't quite understand what the whole fuss that was always made was all about, but before he could get a word in, his sister walked into the room.

Orimura-sensei knocked on a desk loudly. "Order, if you please! Seriously, can't you people contain yourselves? Hmph!" At this, the group dispersed, every girl going back to her spot.

Ichika took this moment to look over the transfer student. He was tall, taller than any student Ichika had seen thus far in the Academy, and dressed smoothly, his uniform as straight and orderly as possible. Obviously, he was very well-disciplined. His hair was silver, lighter than Laura's gray locks, and seemed to be gelled back, apart from two or three spikes that hung in front of his face. His eyes were unseen, as he wore a strange pair of glasses with one single dark red lens that stretched horizontally across his eyeline. The glasses seemed to be attached to a pair of metallic muffs that covered his ears, but obviously did not restrict his hearing. The whole thing seemed to be there for a purpose, not because it was a fashion statement. A scar showing from beneath the glasses amplified that thought. His face was set in a scowl, but not in an angry one. It simply seemed to be a default facial expression. All in all, Douglass seemed to be a very serious young man.

Upon being directed to it, Douglass took a seat without a word. Even though there was whispering and giggling going on from the girls surrounding him, he didn't so much as move a finger, paying careful attention to the lecture that was being given by the instructors. Ichika looked over at him on occasion, only to see the boy seemingly staring to the front. It was impossible to tell what exactly was on his mind due to the glasses, but his body was rigid and he appeared to be sitting at attention, so it was obvious that he was awake and aware of what was going on around him.

After class, Ichika approached Douglass, smiling. "Hello, Douglass-san. I'm Okimura-san, but my friends call me Ichika."

Douglass looked up at Ichika, and said in a careful, but strong voice, "All right. In that case you may call me Jason." He gave a light nod, confirming this statement. "You're the first, right? I mean, the first male to be discovered to pilot an IS. How does that feel, I wonder?" Ichika chuckled weakly. "Well, I don't know. I don't feel that special about it, since I'm not actually as good at it as many people here."

As if it was scripted, immediately at that statement, 5 girls appeared behind Ichika and grabbed him by the shoulders. Ichika's response to this was a small squeak. "Oh, sheesh!" One of the females, with long blond hair, exclaimed, "Come on, Ichika, let's go get some lunch!" Another, who wore an eyepatch, noted Jason. "Who is this man, Ichika? Why are you conversing with someone from the outside?"

Ichika sighed, rubbing his head. "Do you pay attention, Laura? This is Jason Douglass-san, the other male IS pilot." The young man gave a nod in greeting as his name was mentioned. "I guess I should be the one to show him around, so why doesn't he come have some lunch with us?" he turned to Jason. "That's fine with you, right?" Douglass looked long and hard at Ichika, then said clearly, "Sure." The girls looked at eachother, then nodded, as if coming to some sort of agreement, and said simultaneously, "That's fine." To this, Ichika could only sigh.

As they walked to the eating area, Ichika introduced them in turn. "Houki, Rin, Cecilia, Charlotte, and Laura. These are my friends from this school. Most of you guys already know him. Rin, you're in another class, so, this is Jason-san. He's the student representing America." The girls seemed to accept Douglass readily, and he appeared to have no problems with them, though he still had yet to smile once. The question on everyone's mind however, was the same: How was it possible for Douglass to pilot an IS? It wasn't even certain how Ichika could do it, so now that there was another who had such an ability, the mystery seemed thicker than ever. Jason's response didn't help in the least.

"I didn't ask for it. I don't even readily accept it yet. I suppose I'm going to need to do so, since I'll be spending my time here with it, but I think of it as a curse, not some ability I should be proud of."

The group seemed slightly surprised by this, but appeared to decide not to argue with it. Speaking for the group, Ichika said, "Everyone's entitled to their beliefs, I suppose." Jason nodded. "Thank you." They continued to the eating area casually, talking to Jason about themselves and telling him about the Academy. Jason didn't offer too much knowledge about himself, but shared some things, including the fact that his hobbies involved reading and listening to music, and that he was (to the surprise of several of the people present) an aspiring mangaka. It was noticed by everyone that he did not smile at all during the conversation.

As they made their way to a table, Ichika looked at Douglass's tray. "Wow, you don't eat so much. How did you become so tall if you don't have a good appetite?" Douglass chuckled, albeit without smiling. "Don't ask me. I guess it's just part of my anatomy. I've never been the biggest eater." He looked down at Ichika's own food. "Unlike you, haha." Ichika's face reddened slightly. "Hey, I can eat as much as I like as long as I don't get fat, right?" Douglass stared at him for a good long time, or at least that's what it looked like, since he was still wearing his glasses. After a couple of long seconds, however, Jason's face split into a grin, and he burst out laughing. His laughter wasn't loud, about the same volume as his voice, but it also had the same clarity as his voice, and sounded hopeful and clean. Ichika smiled to himself. So, this guy wasn't the emotionless puppet he made himself out to be. This was good. Maybe he'd be able to get Douglass to open up more.

Even after he stopped laughing, Douglass wore his smile through the whole lunch session. The girls were happy about this, too, knowing that they won't be spending the rest of their time at the Academy with a sourpuss tailing Ichiko.

Douglass, in the meanwhile, noticed how clingy the group of girls was to this Ichika character. After watching it for a moment, and seeing a session of them deliberately getting him to feed them and the like, Jason understood, and chuckled lightly to himself. What was probably the funniest thing here was that Ichika seemed completely oblivious to it. Douglass wondered how long it could hold. He was, however, relieved to understand that none of them would be chasing after him. That would be a bother, since romance wasn't a priority to him. Spending time around people interested in another man, therefore, was ideal. He decided there that he would become closer to this specific group.

Jason spoke up rather suddenly. "Um...if I may get a word in? I'd like to thank you guys for being this inviting to me. I didn't expect there to be a group of people to take me in like this on my first day. Therefore, I am grateful." One of the girls, a tall one with long brown hair that she wore in a ribbon, Houki, he remembered her name was, spoke up, "Not at all. It should be only natural. We're not just going to turn someone away, right? That wouldn't feel morally correct. Also, you're the second male to be able to pilot an IS in the world, right? Obviously, we're honored to have you." Ichika picked up where she left off. "Houki is right on all counts, but, also, we just wanna be friends with you. Nothing wrong with that, right?" Douglass smiled and shook his head. "No. Nothing at all."

As Ichika walked down a hallway to class the next morning, he was surprised when a sudden tug came at his arm and pulled him to a side path. A hand clapped over his mouth before he could speak, and he saw that it was Douglass, who was looking furtively in different directions. Ichika broke free of the grip and asked, "What's going on?" Jason put a finger to his own lips. "Shh! I'm being pursued!" He pulled Ichika closer, still looking around carefully. "You didn't warn me about the student body, Orimura!"

Suddenly realizing what was going on, Ichika chuckled weakly. "They've locked onto new prey, huh? Must be rough..." He was silenced by furious hand signals from Jason, who sneaked a glance around the corner. He was obviously troubled by what he saw, and immediately turned and ran down the hall and out of sight. Ichika sighed and looked to see what bothered Douglass so much.

He gulped as she saw the massive crowd of girls rushing down the hall. They stopped at the corner. One of the girls at the front sighed. "Aww, we lost him..." Another one, however, noted Ichika's presence. "Hey, everyone, it's Ichika!" Their mood seemingly revived, they began to move forward. The boy didn't think twice before running off in the same direction as Douglass. He didn't get very far until he felt Jason's hands pulling again, and he was dragged into another side passage. The two boys stayed undercover there for a moment, hearing the large crowd charge by, and they only took a breath when the whole group was past. They then looked at each other and burst into quiet, relieved laughter. Douglass asked softly, "Is it like that for you every day?" Ichika grinned. "Pretty much." Douglass sighed. "Well, at least I don't get such issues with my roommate."

Ichika looked curious. "Who were you paired with?" Jason smiled lightly, the same smile he usually gave, cool and small in its existence, but sincere. "Laura. She's fairly considerate as a roommate, although she seems to have an unhealthy interest in you. She's constantly calling you her wife for some reason." This called another small chuckle from Ichika. "Yeah, that's nothing new. I'm not sure what she's all about when she calls me that, but I think she simply misunderstands something about Japanese culture..."

The two walked hurriedly to class in a comfortable silence. Once at the door, Ichika put a hand on Jason's shoulder. "Hey, why don't you join us for IS practice after school? Since you're a transfer student, you have a personal IS, right?" Douglass nodded. "That's right. I would be happy to help out." Ichika grinned. "That's Stadium 3. Well, we'll see each other in the changing rooms, so it doesn't really matter if you for-" Before he could finish, Douglass said, "Stadium 3. I have committed it to memory." They grinned at each other and walked into the classroom.

Ichika was unsurprised to see Jason run into the changing room, slam the door behind him, and breathe a sigh of relief. Douglass shook his head, "Seriously, they're everywhere."

He looked about. "Well, guess I'd better get ready..." Ichika nodded. "Your piloting uniform is in that locker over there." He pointed to a locker across from his own. Removing it, Douglass's usual frown deepened. "Isn't it a bit small? My stomach will be exposed." He looked over at Ichika, who was already in his uniform. "Oh. Yours is small, too." Ichika laughed quietly. "Yeah. They're obviously designed like this on purpose, though, they're nothing like the female uniforms."

Jason sighed and began to change, removing his coat and undershirt. Ichika instinctively turned away to give him privacy, but Douglass noted, "You seem extremely shy. We're both guys, right? And we're only changing." Ichika sighed. "Sorry, but I got really used to turning away when people change around me, since I've been around only girls for about a year now." Douglass chuckled. "I guess you're right." He slipped on the top of his uniform, although he did not remove his glasses to do so. They seemed thoroughly attached to his head. Ichika spoke out loud, "Hey, why do you wear those all the time? You don't even bother to take them off when you change, so are they really important to you?"

Douglass frowned deeper than Ichika had ever seen him frown. After a pause, he said, "You'll see soon enough." Ichika looked confused, but shrugged and turned to exit. "I'll see you out there. Finish changing quickly so we can start." Jason nodded. "Stadium 3, right?" Ichika smiled. "Yep. See you soon."

When Douglass walked into the preparation room, Ichika had already mounted his IS, as had Charlotte and Houki, who had apparently also come for practice. Laura was there, too, but she had not seated up yet. Douglass sighed and tapped the metallic earmuffs of his glasses twice on either side. Some beeps were heard, and a whirring sound came from his glasses, and then the muffs twisted and released their clamp on Jason's head. He removed them and folded them up, putting them on a table to the side.

Ichika looked over to see if he could get a look at Douglass's eyes, but was disappointed when he saw that they were closed. The scar that had been seen coming from beneath the glasses intersected with Jason's left eye, making an x-like shape on the left side of his face. With closed eyes, Douglass took hold of a small crystal that hung on his belt. "Assist me, Canyon Splitter!"

The IS emerged like any personal IS Ichika had seen before. It came out peice by peice, clamping around his chest first, then expanding to the rest of the body. Something Ichika had not seen before on an IS (discounting Gospel), however, was a helmet that wrapped around the top part of Douglass's head, covering his eyes once again. The IS itself was massive, bigger than both Akatsubaki and Byakushiki, with dark gray coloration. The limbs were massive, and the wings appeared to have numerous rocket boosters to aid in flight. All in all, the thing looked extremely slow. Douglass reached out with his right arm and called out, "Canyon Splitter. Activate Heaven's Breach." In response to the command, a massive black shotgun appeared in his hand, and Douglass immediately caught it with the second, balancing its weight in both arms.

Laura had mounted her Schwarzen Regen while Douglass finished up preparations, so after that, they were set to practice as they pleased. They started off doing some of the more complex maneuvers that had been taught in the last couple of days, and all four of the people who had attended the Academy earlier were surprised at how easily Douglass and his Canyon Splitter managed to move around, despite the massive bulk of the IS. Before long, Laura announced that she wished to do mock battle with Douglass, since they were roommates and she wished to see his power. Douglass calmly accepted and the others moved out of the way to watch the combat.

Douglass immediately pumped the Heaven's Breach, and a gigantic shell fell from the side of the shotgun, making a massive clatter as it hit the ground below them. Laura frowned. A weapon with ammunition that large would no doubt be slow, so if she could move out of the way properly, she would be able to escape without a scrat-

Before she could even finish her though, the blast hit. It was alarmingly fast, not at all what she had expected. Jason's voice came on through the intercom. "You've gotta move fast! Don't let appearances cloud your strategy!" Looking at her information screen, Laura's eyes widened. Her shield was already down to half power. Such immense strength, with such speed! It seemed as if the only weakness of the Heaven's Breach was the...

She nodded, understanding what she needed to do. Douglass muttered something under his breath and began to reload, pumping the massive shotgun. While he spent time doing that, however, the wire cables extended from Schwarzen Regen and wrapped around Canyon Splitter, knocking the massive bulk of the IS off-balance and sending it toppling. A call to the rocket boosters halted its descent, but he was still wrapped tightly in the cables. Laura took this moment to aim, her cannon lowering to Canyon Splitter's level. She was about to fire it, when suddenly, the IS stopped responding to her commands. The cables loosened and drooped, and the Schwarzen Regen was simply hanging in the air, a sitting duck. Laura called out, "What happened? What did you do?"

Douglass smiled, spreading his arms. "Overdrive Pulse. A function added to the Splitter series of IS which allows me, through contact with another IS, to disable its systems for a brief moment. This gaves me time to perform a counterattack." The shotgun disappeared from his hands as he called out, "Misery Cleaver!" A huge sword replaced the shotgun in his right hand, and, once again, he shared the weight with his left. As a two-handed weapon, it looked immensely powerful, but due to the bulk of Canyon Splitter, approach would be slow. Laura took this offered time as a chance to attempt to reboot her system, and she began giving out commands rapidly to see if she could start something, anything, that would keep her safe.

Misery Cleaver was about two feet from her head before she managed to get AIC running, and raised her hand just in time to stop the massive sword. Douglass gritted his teeth as he realized that not only was Misery Cleaver not going to be able to break through this defense system, but that he couldn't move his IS. The tables had turned on him. During this time, Laura had managed to completely reboot the systems on Schwarzen Regen, and was once again locking onto Canyon Splitter.

Then, the unexpected happened. Jason, who had not been moving until then, disabled a portion of his IS, and the helmet that had been covering his eyes slid off. Laura was distracted by this motion from her work, and the AIC shield lowered. Before she knew it, Misery Cleaver was at her throat. She looked straight at Douglass's face, and immediately realized that something was wrong. Despite his advantageous position, Jason's mouth was set in a grimace, his teeth clenched from obvious discomfort. His eyes were still shut tightly. He asked in a troubled voice, "Am I in victory position?" Laura nodded. "Yes. You are."

Douglass sighed. "That's good. In that case, can we be finished? Help me into the loading bay, if you will."

The group helped Douglass get his IS over to the preparation room, where he dismounted and stretched. He reached out a hand in no particular direction. "Could I have my glasses, please?" Ichika grabbed them from the table and handed them to Jason, who unfolded them and attached them to his head. Some whirring sounds came from the contraption as the muffs tightened around his ears and Douglass breathed a sigh of relief. Ichika stepped forward. "Hey...are you ok? What happened just there? Why didn't you open your eyes?"

Jason seemed to be staring out into space, but replied coolly. "Isn't it obvious? I can't see without the glasses. They, as well as the special helmet on my IS, connect to my nervous system around my eyes. Without them, I'm as good as dead."

"I'm blind."


	2. Friends

"I see everything just fine, but only when I wear these. You may think it would be annoying, but I've gotten used to it. I've had them for several years now, and I still haven't gotten the chance to thank the one who gifted me with them. Maybe someday, I'll see her again."

Chapter 2

Friends

"Hey there, Jason! We were just about to sit down for some tea, do you want to join us?"

Jason had decided to leave Laura to her strange musings and see if he could spend some time with Ichika, so he went over to his dorm to see if he was there. Apparently, Ichika was about to have tea with Charlotte, and Douglass had arrived just in time for it. Jason smiled his usual small smile. "Sure, why not? Thank you for the invitation."

Offering Douglass a seat on his bed, Ichika poured some green tea for the three of them. He also took this moment to look over Douglass in his casual wear. He was wearing a blue, sleeveless shirt with a turtleneck collar and a pair of black jeans. Something else about him seemed strangely off, however, and it made Jason look strangely lax. "Hey, Jason, is there something different about you today? It's almost as if you look less clean-cut than usual." Douglass nodded, running a hand through his hair. "I didn't gel my hair that strongly today, so I guess it looks a bit less prim than usual."

Charlotte spoke up, "I think it looks kind of nice like that. Maybe you should wear it without gel some days." Douglass chuckled lightly. "Maybe I should. Maybe I will. Who knows. Ah, thank you." The last sentence was directed at Ichika, who had passed a cup of tea to him. Tasting it, he hummed quietly. "It tastes a bit different from other tea I've had before." This incurred a small laugh from Charlotte. "I said the same thing first time I tried Ichika's tea." Ichika also laughed a bit. "And I still don't know what you guys mean by that. It tastes the same to me." Shrugging, Douglass drank some more. "In any case, it's good. You make good tea, Orimura."

Ichika sighed. "Call me Ichika, seriously. If we're going to be friends, you don't need to be so formal all the time." Douglass laughed in a slightly sardonic manner. "Sorry, I guess it just goes against what I've learned about etiquette. But, I guess if you're gonna call me Jason, it would only be natural for me to call you Ichika. I guess it feels fine." He looked at Charlotte. "Is it fine for me to continue calling you Dunois-san? I don't think I'd feel comfortable calling you by first name." Charlotte shook her head. "No, no, it's fine. I think there's going to be a point sometime when we can all call each other by first name, anyways." She seemed a bit shy speaking to him, and Douglass understood that she didn't feel comfortable with him in the room with Ichika. He finished the tea, and handed the cup to Ichika. "Thank you very much. I'll not disturb you any longer."

As he stood, Ichika asked him in a confused voice, "You sure you don't want to stay a little longer? We could talk if you wan-" Douglass cut him off, "You've got ample conversation already. Besides, I've got things to do. I'll see you around later." He left without another word.

* * *

He noticed immediately that he was not the first person on the roof. As he exited into the fresh air, he noticed a girl there, looking out into the city. He recognized her as Cecilia Alcott, one of Ichika's friends. He approached silently, and leaned on the rail a couple of feet away from her, also looking out to the city. He didn't look at her when he spoke up in English, knowing that she spoke it as well, "Why are you doing this?"

She snapped out of whatever thoughts she was having, finally noticing him. She replied in English, with a recognizable British accent. "It's not obvious? I'm looking out at the city." Her tone was cautious, as she didn't know fully what he implied with his question. Douglass, however, thought otherwise. "That's not what I mean, and you know it. You are in love with him. All of you are. And, true, he's a bit thick-headed about it. However, are you helping your situation, acting the way you do now?" Cecilia frowned. "What are you-?" Jason finally turned to face her, the red lens that acted as his eyes flashing in the light. "You know what I'm saying. Have you asked him out properly once? Have you told him your feelings? Or do you continue playing simple games with him? Getting him to feed you, or grabbing onto his arm like a child while he's walking. Seriously. You need to be properly assertive if you want to get anywhere." Cecilia looked shocked, but not in a bad way. It's as if suddenly she understood something she had not understood earlier.

"Why are you telling me all this? Don't you consider him a rival, does he not have a girl tracking him that you like or something? Why are you helping him out like this?" Douglass laughed out loud at this proposition. "Believe it or not, no. I'm not looking for romance. What I'm seeking is peace of mind. And the way you guys can't seem to be at least a little clear with Ichika is bothersome. I mean, you know how he is. Apparently, you have to dangle something in front of his face in order for him to notice it." Cecilia giggled in response. "You're right. He can be dull. But, he's extremely kind, and he is sensitive, and he's a great person in general." Douglass smiled. "See? This is why I'm trying to help out. I need this as much as you do, simply so I can live comfortably. And hey, if you don't act assertive soon, I'm fairly certain the others will. Especially since I'll be giving them the same advice."

Cecilia realized what he just said, but before she could exclaim in protest, he was already walking off, waving and laughing at the same time.

* * *

He didn't walk far down the hallway before the kick came, smashing him in the face and sending him flying down the hall from where he came. He stood calmly, and, instinctively adjusting his glasses, which did not need adjustment, he called out, "Who was that?" A girl walked up to him, grabbed him by the turtleneck collar, and pushed him up against a wall. Her voice sounded scathing and vengeful. "You...you transferred here...and didn't call it to my attention?! What the hell have you been doing?!" The grip released, and Jason fell to the floor. Looking up, he tried to get a clear look at who it was who was abusing him like thi-

"Oh."

The girl standing over him was fairly tall, about the same height as Cecilia, a little taller, with black hair that reached just below her shoulders. In it, she wore a pin that was shaped like a butterfly. Her eyes were colored an unnatural tone of green, and she was dressed casually, with a black t-shirt and jeans with ripped pant-legs. She put her hands on her hips. "Three years we haven't seen each other, and all you can say is 'Oh?' You're pathetic, Douglass!" Jason stood up and brushed himself off, and crossed his arms, looking at her. "You know, I didn't know you were here, Kirino-san. Had I known, you would have been the first person I visited, believe me." Upon saying this, he received a slap across the face. "Agh! Is it your hobby to hurt me or something?!" The attacker looked thoroughly annoyed. "Jeez! I told you even back when I was a transfer student to your American school to call me by my first name! It's Mishima, all right?" Douglass sighed, wiping the lens of his glasses. "But you call me Douglass...why shouldn't I call you by your last name?" Mishima crossed her arms. "Because I'm in charge here! You're at fault, Douglass! You didn't come visit me! I'm disappointed!" Suddenly, her whole demeanor changed, her voice going sweet and concerned. "Hey, you ok? You look tired. I missed you! You could have at least messaged me once in awhile! Ahh, you're a mess!" Jason sighed, shaking his head. "You haven't changed. Seriously, I can't be certain when you're being serious." He crossed his arms. "Well, let's get some tea or something. We've plenty to talk about." Mishima nodded enthusiastically. "Sure thing! Let's go, let's go!" She grabbed onto his hand and dragged him away from the area, not even waiting to hear his next sentence.

* * *

"So that's how it happened..." Mishima muttered quietly. She gripped her cup of tea tightly. "I'm sorry to hear about the accident." Jason shook his head. He had his usual poker face on, and wasn't looking at Mishima, instead focusing on the water that was seen from the rail they were leaning against. "I woulda been finished, if it weren't for that angel..." Mishima turned sharply to Douglass. "Angel? What are you talking about?" Jason shook his head. "I don't remember properly, since it was as if in a dreamlike state, but, I swear I remember an angel coming from the darkness around me, speaking to me...and then, it was as if I woke up, and I had these on me." he gestured to the glasses. "I just can't remember who it was..."

Mishima smiled at him while he wasn't looking. The boy who had become her first friend when she was a transfer student in the US...here he was, and he hadn't changed much, even with the seeing technology. He was still quiet and reclusive, and yet sensitive. She turned around, resting her back on the rail. "Hey, would you mind taking them off for a moment?" Douglass turned to face her. "What are you talking about?" His voice was cautious, but he trusted her from years back, so he tapped on the muffs, and the familiar beeps sounded as they ceased their clutch on his head. He pulled off the glasses, and folded them up. His eyes were closed tightly, and his eyebrows seemed stuck in a position of being pointed inward, giving him an angry look. Mishima sighed. "Can you open your eyes?" Douglass paused, but nodded. "I can do that much. It feels weird, since I don't see anything even when they're open, so I don't usually do so without the glasses."

Kirino shook her head. "Just do it. Don't give me the life story of your eyes." Jason sighed, but complied, making his eyelids lift slowly. Mishima gulped at the sight. His irises and pupils were whitened, causing it to look as if he did not even possess them. He didn't look at anything, but instead appeared to look out into empty space. Kirino's eyes watered slightly, but she didn't let this be known to him, wiping them quickly although he had no way of seeing it anyways. "What are you doing anyways, Kirino-san?" Mishima yelled out, "It's Mishima, idiot!" She looked down at the glasses in her hands. "Just hold still for a moment," She whispered, staring down at the contraption. The more she looked at the glasses, the more she hated them. She brought them closer and closer to her face, until she was looking into the lens as if trying to stare it down, get some sort of psychological victory against the peice of metal, glass, and wires. Eventually, she gave up on it, and placed the glasses into Jason's hand. "Here. Have them back."

Douglass replaced them on his head, letting them plug back into his system. He looked over at Mishima. "You all right? You look sort of shaken." She shook her head, although it was obvious that she was extremely troubled. "I'm fine. It's ok. It's ok. It's ok." She repeated this several times, sounding more as if she was trying to convince herself that it was the truth than as if she was trying to console Jason. He sighed and put his hand on her shoulder. "Come on. Let's head inside. Let's sit down somewhere."

* * *

As the two were walking down the hall, they bumped into Ichika, who was being dragged by Houki somewhere. Jason and Mishima stepped out of the way. At the questioning looks, Houki explained, "He's been slacking off and ignoring his kendo training. I've always gotta drag him out of his room to train. Seriously." They exchanged nods of farewell, and Houki continued, dragging a helpless Ichika behind her. Jason and Mishima looked at each other and shrugged.

Finally arriving at the door he was looking for, Douglass knocked. "Bodewig-san? It's Douglass, I'm coming in." He twisted the handle and opened the door, only to be greeted with the barrel of a pistol pointing at his face. "Gah! It's me, it's me!" He cried this out, backing up, Mishima grabbing his shoulders and hiding behind him. Laura lowered the gun, noticing that it was Jason. "Oh, it's you. You can come in. Who is she, though?" She raised the gun again, noticing Mishima. Douglass, however, pushed the barrel down. "This is Kirino Mishima-san. She's an old friend of mine, and, as it turns out, she attends this school as well. I brought her to introduce you guys and see if you needed anything." He stared at the gun. "Seriously, though, where did you get that?"

Laura pocketed the weapon. "I had it all along." She looked at Mishima. "My name is Laura Bodewig. It's a pleasure to meet you." Mishima, who looked extremely flustered, bowed slightly. "O-of course. I-I'm Kirino Mishima. U-um, it's n-nice to meet you too?" She flashed a questioning glance at Jason, as if asking him how he manages to stay alive. Jason only shook his head in return. Laura took a seat. Douglass offered the other chair to Mishima and stayed standing himself.

Laura turned to her computer screen. "I've been researching your Canyon Splitter, Douglass-san. From what I've read, the Splitter series of Infinite Stratos machines are a highly limited line. In fact, as far as I understand, you pilot a limited model, an upper 3rd-generation Canyon Splitter. It was designed as part of the Splitter series along with Circuit Splitter and Psyche Splitter in the United States. All of them share the unique Overdrive Pulse ability, which keeps enemies at bay in order to make up for the massive lack of speed and agility in all of the Splitter models. Heaven's Breach is a completed weapon, safe to use and extremely powerful, but with a slow reload time. Misery Cleaver, however...I'm surprised you would use it. It is an experimental weapon, not completely perfected yet. There is a chance that it could backfire." Douglass nodded. "That is true. However, I cannot simply have a personal IS focused on taking and giving massive amounts of damage without a proper melee weapon. Heaven's Breach is simply not enough. That's more of a one-time weapon in a battle, since once an enemy realizes the obvious weakness to it, they'll simply target me when I reload, a huge window. That's when both Overdrive Pulse and Misery Cleaver come into play."

Kirino listened to the whole thing, marvelling at the discussion Douglass, a male, could have with a seasoned IS pilot. She smiled, feeling pride for her childhood friend. He turned to her. "Hey, Mishima...do you have a personal IS?" She laughed. "Are you kidding? I'm just an average student. We don't get personal ISs at this point." Douglass sighed. "That's a shame. I was thinking of having a serious battle with you, but if its against a training IS, I doubt that either of us would find it enjoyable." Mishima chuckled. "Well, I guess you'll just have to wait. I'm going to train so that I can be the top of my class! Then, when I get a personal IS, we can have our fight."

Douglass smiled. "Canyon Splitter and I are both looking forward to it." Mishima giggled, looking over him and his sleeveless, turtleneck shirt. His strange taste in clothing certainly had not changed. Her eyes widened slightly as she remembered something, and pulled a pair of black, fingerless gloves out of her pocket. "Here! These are a gift for you! I remembered how you always liked weird clothes, so when I heard that you transferred, I got you these as a welcome gift!" Douglass took them, looking pleasantly surprised. "Thanks a bunch! I'll wear them all the time. Well, I'll routinely wash them, but I'll wear them while they're not being cleaned for sure!" He grinned, slipping them onto his hands, and flexing his fingers, feeling the cloth against his skin. "Feels good!" He looked up and smiled. "I'll have to get you something, then! It's only fair, right?"

Blushing a little, Mishima shook her head. "Ah, no, that's not necessary. It's a gift, and you don't really ask for anything in return for gifts, right?" Jason, however would have none of it. "No need to be shy! I'll get you something for sure!" Laura cleared her throat. "Kirino-san, are you doing this in order to make Douglass-san your wife?" The two turned their heads to look at her blankly. Laura blinked. "Did I say something wrong?"

* * *

The duo breathed a sigh of relief when they got out of the dorm, then looked at each other and broke into laughter. Mishima shook her head. "Seriously, how do you live with her?" Douglass shrugged. "She's a bit eccentric, but at least she's a considerate roommate. When she's not, you know, pointing guns at people." They both laughed again. Mishima grinned. "It's good to see you haven't changed much. You still feel the need to pretend to be serious all the time. You should loosen up more! Be yourself!" Douglass chuckled. "You know I would, if it weren't for the title of 'male IS pilot' I have to carry along with me. I just think I should act the part, right?" The girl shook her head. "Sure, when you're in class. But you really don't need to be that guy around your friends. That's what friends are, right?"

Douglass nodded, a relaxed smile on his face. "I suppose you've got a point. By the way, I've been meaning to ask. Are you wearing contacts? I don't remember your eyes having such a vivid color." Kirino smiled. "Shouldn't that be obvious? You don't get people that just have eyes this green you know? They're like your hair! You dyed it in order to get that silver color, right?"

Jason's smile faded, and Mishima immediately understood she had gone too far. "Don't tell me...it was because of-?" Douglass nodded, and Mishima's eyes filled with tears. Without thinking, she leaned forward and embraced her friend. "I'm sorry." She whispered, and Jason nodded, patting her back. "Pull yourself together, Mishima. It's just hair color. You don't have to get all teary about it." Kirino pulled away, wiping her eyes. Suddenly, she lashed out, slapping Douglass. He looked at her, shocked, only to realize she had a mischievous grin on her face. "If you get stuck in melancholy, you'll get sloppy, Douglass!" Jason laughed, rubbing his face. "Shouldn't I be the one telling you that?"

At that moment, Houki walked past them, practice sword leaning on her shoulder. A couple of moments later, Ichika was seen, weakly dragging his own sword down the hall in a slouched position. He stopped in front of Douglass. "Seriously, though, what did I do to deserve this treatment?..." He groaned as he continued down the hall. Douglass and Kirino watched them vanish before Jason spoke up. "Good friends, huh?"

* * *

The dark figure watched the door slide open in front of her, and she smiled, satisfied. Everything seemed to be going as planned. She walked down the empty halls, searching for the door she needed. Finally arriving at it, she used the keycard she had received to open it, and entered the room. Approaching one of the computers in the room, she began to work, punching in some lines of code while checking cameras for any sign of pursuit. After a couple of minutes of seemingly random searching, she finally came across what she needed, and grinned.

"At least we may meet, Mr. Jason Douglass."


	3. Assault

"I've been wondering recently about life. I wonder why I happened to be the second out of countless males who suddenly was able to pilot these depressing machines. I wonder why the accident had to have happened. I wonder why I'm forced to live a world in which I'm unsure who I can work with and who is my natural enemy. I just...wonder, is all."

Chapter 3

Assault

The boy woke up suddenly, in the middle of the night. Was he dreaming? He didn't remember. He opened his eyes, trying to look around him, see what time it was, or at least to make sure he didn't wake Laura with his sudden rise. That was when he realized that he couldn't see anything, even with his eyes open. Dear goodness, why couldn't he see? Why couldn't he see?! He almost fell into a state of panic, before he remembered. He was blind. His glasses were on a bedside table. He reached out in its direction, feeling around the table until he found them. Fumbling a little, he managed to unfold them and place them on his face.

He had to wait a little before his eyesight activated, and color flooded Douglass's brain. Well, as much color as there was in the middle of the night. He looked over at the clock. 3:27. Almost half past three. Almost the time he woke up two years ago, when he first was forced to see the world through a single long lens. He sighed, and removed the glasses, putting them back on the table. He lay back down on his bed, and attempted to occupy himself with remembering the face that hung over his when he woke up that night. That face. The angel who had gifted him with sight when he lost it.

It was never exactly the same in his head. Sometimes, the hair was pink and fuzzy, while sometimes it was straight and black. Sometimes her eyes were bright yellow, sometimes a murky brown. No matter how he pictured her, she looked beautiful. He gripped his blanket. Who was she...? He fell asleep with this question in his mind.

* * *

"Did you hear? They say Douglass-san has a girl that he hangs out with now." "Aww, man, did we miss our chance?" "Don't lose heart! We can still win him from her!" This was one of the conversations Douglass overheard as he entered class that morning. He took his seat silently, giving a nod of greeting to Ichika, and looked down at his hands. He was wearing the gloves that Kirino had gifted him several days ago. He smiled to himself, flexing his fingers as he commonly did while wearing the gloves, getting their feel into his palms. He was interrupted, from his thoughts when a book slammed onto his head. He looked up at his assailant and sighed. "Mishima, you need to come up with a better greeting. I'll run out of brain cells by the time school is over if this carries on."

Kirino smiled, crossing her arms. "That's what you get for making me visit your class instead of you visiting mine in the morning, Douglass! You shouldn't make a lady force herself to walk somewhere. It's ungentlemanly." Douglass sighed. "You sound like Alcott-san when she's talking to Ichika. Seriously." He shook his head. "Well, good morning. Why are you here? Homeroom is about to begin." Mishima stood there for a moment before saying, "Shut up! I don't need a reason to visit my friend!" Jason laughed at this statement. "I dunno if you're here to visit me or to slam books on my hea-" Before he could finish, Mishima hit him with the book again. "Stop complaining, idiot! Be happy I'm here at all!"

He sighed and was about to say something before the bell rang and Orimura-sensei entered. Mishima grimaced and waved quickly, running out of the room. Douglass sighed, shaking his head. "Seriously..." He muttered under his breath. He fell into his usual classroom mode, focusing his attention on the instructors, removing everything around him from the picture. The focus of the lesson that day was on refining evasive skills and escape maneuvers. He understood that this was important to him and Canyon Splitter, which, with its massive bulk, had great difficulty avoiding or escaping attacks. He barely looked down at his notebook, even when writing, having an uncanny trust in his own ability to focus on multiple things. The lessons whizzed by, and before he knew it, it was time for lunch break.

* * *

Mishima was waiting for him as he exited class. "Douglass! Eat lunch with me today!" Jason smiled, nodding. "Sure thing. Why don't you meet Orimura and his gang? They were the ones I stuck with before you came by. Let's all eat together." Kirino thought this over, and shrugged. "I guess it's not a bad idea. Let's go, come on!" Just then, Ichika appeared behind Douglass. "Sheesh, I thought it was bad last year when sis was teaching! I didn't expect her to make herself a Second-year teacher as well!" Douglass chuckled. "You've had a difficult time last year with her as an instructor? She's very capable. I feel comfortable learning from her." He smiled at Kirino. "Well, you already know Ichika, naturally. He's a popular one." Mishima chuckled. "Of course, of course. I was never part of any groups that chased him around, though. In any case, it's nice to meet you. I'm Kirino Mishima."

The three started off toward the eating area, and before long, Ichika was surrounded by his primary admirers. Douglass was silent most of the time, exchanging a few words with Kirino, sometimes responding to some questions asked by the others, or agreeing on a subject one of them brought up. As they walked through the grounds, Douglass suddenly stopped. He had a strange feeling in his gut, as if someone was watching him. He turned his head to the left, to a small hill covered with grass and a single tree. That's when he noticed her. A female, shrouded in the shadows of the tree, stood beneath its branches. She was mostly unseen, but she appeared to be a student. Jason frowned, and turned to the group, who had also stopped, watching him. He turned back to the tree, only to see that the girl was gone. He gave a slight "Hmph," then continued walking. "Sorry. I have a slight headache. Let's keep moving." As they were walking, he turned his head to the tree again. There she sat in its shade, watching him. Douglass shook his head, turned, and didn't look back.

* * *

Jason didn't speak much during the lunch period. Sometimes, when asked a question, he would take a couple of seconds thinking before asking, "What was the question again?" Everyone there noticed how distant he seemed to be. Mishima, who was sitting next to him, nudged him lightly with her elbow. He looked at her with a blank look on his face. She sighed, exasperated. "You're really bad at hiding stuff, Douglass. We know that something's going on. Spill it."

Jason let out a breath. "What is there to spill? I don't feel my best. It's just a nasty premonition, that's all. I don't believe in that kind of stuff, but a feeling is a feeling." He munched on some rice. Charlotte spoke up. "You know, sometimes you should follow what your feelings are telling you. If they're making you this distracted, you should probably find out what it is that's causing it." Douglass laughed quietly. "I suppose that would be a good approach, but how am I to go about doing something like that, right? A feeling isn't like a road, you know. You can't simply trace what it's coming from and where it leads."

Nobody really could argue with that kind of logic, and the group switched the subject, resuming their lunch. Douglass tried his best to keep with the mood, showing a smile here and there, and he tried harder to pay more careful attention, but his mind kept wavering back to the girl beneath the tree. Something just seemed off about her. The image gave off a sinister feel. He frowned to himself. He was snapped out of his thoughts, however, when he heard people calling his name. He looked up. "Huh?"

Mishima smiled, albeit a little worriedly. "Lunch break is over. We should get back to class." Jason nodded. "Right." He sighed as he stood up, rubbing his head. "Sorry. I haven't been sleeping well, either. I think I should just get some rest after school is over." Kirino nodded. "You do that. Don't go and pretend to rest while you're trying to do schoolwork, though. I remember you, you never let yourself rest even when you need it more than anything." Douglass only groaned in response.

* * *

They were in the main building when the lights suddenly dimmed, then went out completely. A tremor went through the student body as everyone started murmuring to each other nervously. Douglass frowned as a strange sensation shook his core. "Anyone else feel that?" The group looked at him strangely. "Well, the lights are out. It could be a power outage. In such a case, we'll have reserve power running in no time." Ichika offered, although he understood that he was not answering the proper question. Jason shook his head. "No...its just a feeling. I guess I've been stressed, and this outage is just adding to it. Let's wait for the backup power to come on."

Before that happened, however, the windows suddenly were barred shut by metal hatches, and red lights turned on in the halls. A robotic voice announced, "Lockdown mode initiated. All exits sealed. Keep calm and follow the directions of your supervisor." Jason frowned. This whole thing was seeming less and less like a coincidence. Mishima bit her lip, thinking about Jason's erratic behavior and this situation. What the hell was the lockdown all about, anyways? Were they under attack?

The question was answered by Orimura-sensei, who walked soldier-like down the hall. "Everybody remain calm! Here is the situation. Our systems were hacked into last night. It appears that whoever the intruder was set a 'time-bomb' program that would cause the main entrances and exits to be closed for a set amount of time. We still do not understand exactly what it is that the intruder wishes to accomplish during that time, but we need to act quickly to apprehend them. It is extremely difficult to access the systems here from the outside, and I doubt a hacker would go that far. Therefore, there is a high chance that the intruder is in the building."

She called down a list of names. "Orimura, Shinonono, Alcott, Fan, and Douglass! You are the students present who have the most high-class Infinite Stratos machines. They can aid with the systems. Douglass you have primary knowledge on computers such as the ones in this school am I correct?" Jason nodded, causing Mishima to look at him, surprised. "Really? You can work with such complicated systems?" Douglass smiled, a little weakly. "Getting into accidents and running into bad luck are not the only things I've been doing the last three years, right?" Orimura-sensei clapped her hands together. "All right, you five! Come with me, we're going into System Control."

* * *

They walked quickly down the hall after Orimura-sensei, not saying a word, until they got to a sealed door. Orimura-sensei swiped a card on the lock, and the door came open. They entered the room, a huge area filled with computers. Most of them had red screens with some sort of code running on them. Douglass frowned. Whoever had done this was a complicated person. To do so much in one night, so thoroughly, and not get caught? He gritted his teeth. "We're going to need to access the main system, but it seemed to be barred off in the lockdown. I'm going to have to override the whole lockdown system. Everyone, please activate the central area of your IS, and connect a Transfer Cable to it." Ichika looked at him with a loss for words. Douglass had seemed quiet and relaxed most of the time, so this incredibly quick-thinking streak was new, especially with this sense of being on top of things. Everyone, along with Douglass, called out the chest-pieces of their IS and connected a cable to an outlet in the control section of their respective machines.

Douglass pointed out several slots on the center computer. "Please connect yourselves to this mainframe." They did so, and a holographic keyboard appeared in front of Douglass, who set out typing rapidly on it, barely moving anything but his arms and fingers. The others looked at him with light wonder in their eyes. The only one they've seen work this rapidly with computers before was Shinonono Tabane, when she was introducing the Akatsubaki. Random screens appeared in front of everyone's ISs, but they could barely follow what was being said as Douglass rapidly hit more keys, so quickly he seemed to be doing it at random.

A few moments later, Jason stopped typing, and the center computer stopped listing code, the screen changing to a blue color. He walked closer to the computer and began typing code out on the main computer keyboard. One by one, the computers in the room turned back to a blue screen. At one point, he paused, then pressed a key, and all of the windows outside the room opened, the red lights being replaced by the normal ones. The lockdown was broken.

He sighed, pulling out all of the cables. "Thank you for the assistance. Your ISs need charging. Please deactivate them, and do not use the for a day. If you were planning to train today, forget it. For the rest of the day, they're as good as destroyed. I'll visit this evening and help their recovery." Orimura-sensei smiled an impressed smile. "I am thoroughly amazed, Douglass. I'm not sure if even Shinonono Tabane could have done it faster. You've got a hell of a streak of genius in that head of yours." Jason bowed slightly. "I was doing what was asked of me. Besides, the hacker is still at large. Give me a moment to see who accessed the mainframe in the last two days." he turned back to the main computer, typing out something on the keyboard. In a few seconds, a list of names appeared on the screen. He looked up, and gestured for Orimura-sensei to approach. "Do you know all of the names listed?" The woman squinted up at the screen. "Let's see...wait a minute. This computer states that someone accessed this system late last night...but the name is censored. Looks like whoever did it made sure to clean up their act."

Jason laughed sardonically. "No such thing as cleaning up an act. Watch." He typed something out, and the blocked name appeared in large letters at the top of the screen. He typed something else out, and a string of numbers appeared before it. He pressed some keys slowly, and another name came up on the screen. "Yamada Maya." He frowned. "The First-year instructor? I've met her, and doubt that it was her. Bring her over, please."

* * *

Yamada-sensei looked thoroughly dumbstruck. "It's true, I couldn't find my keycard this morning, but it appeared on my desk after I got out of the shower." Orimura-sensei crossed her arms. "Looks like whoever hacked in using the information on the card is good at sneaking as well. Sounds like professional work to me, not a simple hacker." Douglass nodded. "This is definitely something on a larger scale than we expected. The question is, why did they choose this time to activate the lockdown? Nothing important was going on, was it?" Orimura-sensei shook her head. "No, nothing. There is a tournament coming up, but it's in a week and a half. Preparations have barely started. We don't have anything valuable for transfer, either, so thievery is basically out of the question, unless it was information thievery, in which case they would not need to have pulled off the lockdown."

Jason sighed. "Well then. That basically leaves only one variant. Whoever it was wanted to show us what they were capable. it was a warning, a type of provocation. Nothing serious came out of it, but we're not sure what they will do next. I think we should-" He was interrupted when Rin stuck her head into the room. "Ah, Douglass-san? I think there is something you should take a look at."

He walked into the control room steadily. "Alright, what's going o-" His mouth dropped open as he saw what was going on. Every computer in the room now had a screen with a gray coloration, dark green words appearing, stating the same thing everywhere.

"**AS EXPECTED, DOUGLASS. YOU ARE, AS I REMEMBER, A THOROUGHLY IMPRESSIVE MIND. I WILL BE RETURNING WITH MORE TESTS SOON. BE PATIENT."**

**-BLIND FATE**

He ran up to the main computer, and was about to type something out, when the screens all reverted to their original state, as if nothing had ever happened. Douglass gritted his teeth. What was going on? Who the hell was this "Blind Fate" person? He shook his head, and looked to the people in the room. "It would be smart of you to put out extra surveillance around this area, and around any computer system in the school. Our target is an extremely talented hacker, and we cannot allow them to get away with whatever they are planning. It is quite obviously not for our benefit." He ran out of the control room in a huff, his mind full of questions and confused thoughts.

* * *

After relaying the story to his friends, Douglass went over to the IS hangar in order to aid the programs of the machines that were used for the debug that day. He looked up at the camera that looked over the computer there, and nodded reassuringly. He set out in transferring power to them from spare training IS machines that were there. If he were to spread the power evenly, the would all be at full capacity the next day. After performing the energy transfer, he called up the opening of a specific hangar.

He approached the Canyon Splitter slowly, looking at the massive bulk of the IS, and sighed. Sitting down in front of it, he began talking. He spoke of the happenings of today. He spoke of the feelings he had been having. He spoke of the dreams that were haunting him. He spoke of the face that appeared before him. He spoke to the IS as if it were a friend, a family member, a lover. He spoke randomly, until his voice was spent. He spoke until his mind became clouded, and he keeled over. He whispered to himself until he fell asleep.

When he awoke, he was sitting upright in the hangar. He looked up at a clock. Only one hour had passed. He breathed a sigh of relief. It would have been bad to spend the night there. A voice spoke from beside him. "You've been acting like a weirdo, Douglass, but this is a bit much. You can't go ruining yourself like this."

He turned sharply, so sharply he thudded his head against the wall. The voice giggled. "See? You're disoriented. Here, let me help you up." Douglass felt arms wrap around his shoulders and lift him up. He looked at the face of his helper, and saw that it was Kirino. "Mishima..." he muttered, half-asleep. She smiled. "Well, you can see that much. Come on, let's get you to your dorm." She helped him walk out of the hangar, and the two stumbled slowly down the hall toward the dorm rooms.

* * *

He collapsed in bed immediately after removing his jacket, not bothering to do anything more. He wasn't feeling well, and he needed to rest properly. He removed his glasses quickly and place them on a table beside the bed. Before sleep claimed him, he could swear that he felt something else collapse into bed with him, but before he could question his who was was in his surroundings, darkness coated the darkness he already existed in, and he succumbed to the call of rest that was louder than anything else at the moment.

* * *

Mishima smiled, seeing Douglass collapse into sleep immediately. She lay there next to him for a while. She decided she'd stay there a little longer. Just a little longer...


	4. Threat

"Barely anything feels safe anymore. You guys feel safe. The lessons I learn in class feel safe. My bed and dreams usually feel safe. Everything else...not so much. I can only hope this whole thing with Blind Fate can be over soon. It's ruining my mood."

Chapter 4

Threat

Waking up was a chore that morning. It was as if the day itself was buzzing in Jason's ear, trying to get him to stay in bed, sleep an extra hour. That extra hour, he knew, could not be wasted sleeping. He reached to the bedside table the way he always did, grabbing his glasses, putting them on, and experiencing the sudden rush of light and color. There it was: his dorm room. Laura sleeping in her bed, his coat hanging messily on his chair, his shoes seemingly kicked off by the door. Douglass frowned. It was unusually messy. Looking down, he realized that he was wearing his school uniform since yesterday. He was about to take a shower and get a clean uniform when he suddenly realized that he wasn't the only one occupying his bed.

His head turned cautiously, the figure who was still slumbering peacefully next to him slowly coming into view. When Jason saw who it was, the memories of the night before came flooding back to him. He smiled. "So, you were that tired, too, huh? Idiot girl..." Getting out of the bed, he grabbed a fresh male uniform from his drawers and went into the shower room. Showering was always an issue for him, since he couldn't do it with his glasses on. He had to turn on the water and stand still while cleaning himself, as any incorrect movement could send him toppling. Washing had to be quick and efficient, and Douglass took every measure to keep it that way. After taking a shower, he dressed in the clean uniform and went back into the dorm.

* * *

Mishima woke up when she felt an unusual nudging on her shoulders. She opened her eyes sleepily to see that Douglass had been shaking her shoulder lightly, waking her. "Good morning, Mishima. You should change, you don't want to wear a uniform you slept in." Still half-asleep, Kirino sat up in the bed. "It's morning...?" Douglass laughed slightly. "You know, you were the one telling me I need to rest. You look like you were the one who needed the rest all along." He stood up straight. "Come on, get up. I'll ask Laura to let you borrow one of her uniforms, so you go ahead and use our shower. We were both dirty from spending time in the hangar the other day, so you need it as much as I needed it." Mishima nodded, rubbing her eyes. "All right...thank you..."

While Kirino was taking her shower, Jason got together his supplies. He was planning on returning to the hangar before breakfast to check on the progress of the IS recuperation. As he was finishing his packing for the day, the door to the bathroom slammed open and Mishima stormed out with a bath towel around her body. She had a look on her face that screamed that she just realized something. "Douglass! I slept...in the same bed...as you!" She pointed a finger at Jason, who lifted his hands defensively. "For the record, it wasn't me who asked you to do it. I didn't even know about it before this morning." He pointed to the clean uniform he put on the bed. "Wear that for now. You can stop by your dorm and grab one of your own later on." The girl grabbed the uniform and went back into the bathroom to change, looking thoroughly flustered with her face beet red.

Douglass chuckled and zipped up his bag.

* * *

"Thank you for letting us use a spare uniform, Bodewig-san." Douglass bowed lightly. "If there's ever any way to pay off the debt, please say so." Laura nodded. "I'll hold you to your word, Douglass-san." With that out of the way, the pair exited the room. Kirino, still blushing, looked down at her feet, rubbing her hands together nervously. "Um...er...That is...eh..." She took in a deep breath. "Douglass! Thank you for not getting angry with me. I'm sorry about what happened." The boy tilted his head. "Don't be so apologetic. It wasn't your fault, you were tired. No harm came out of it, right?" Inside his head, however, Douglass was experiencing some turmoil. After that incident, he wasn't sure how he should treat Mishima, and that could prove to be an annoyance. He decided that, for now, he should interact with her as he usually did, like a good friend.

Mishima smiled up at him. In truth, she understood that what had happened was no accident, she had chosen to stay there with him, and knew that she would fall asleep there. If any distance was created between them because of the incident, she would be upset to no end. Therefore, this was the happiest outcome there could be for her. She hugged Jason for a moment. "Thank you, Douglass. That was the best answer you could have given." She pulled away. "Now! We both have things to do, so I'll see you later. Let's meet up for breakfast." She turned around and walked down the hall, waving to Jason. He nodded with a smile her way, then turned in the opposite direction and headed to the hangars.

* * *

Orimura-sensei was already there, checking up on the energy level of the IS machines on the computer. Hearing Douglass's approach, she turned her head. "Almost all of the machines are at full power. You did a good job distributing energy. However, there is one thing that worries me..." Jason tilted his head. "What's going on?"

Chifuyu pointed at the screen. "One of the hangars was opened last night. It was the hangar to your Canyon Splitter. Do you know what was going on there?" Sighing, Douglass rubbed his head. "Yeah, that was me. I needed someone to talk to, and not many people can listen as well as Canyon Splitter can. No talking back, no worthless pep talk. I feel that I can speak to it as much as I want, and it'll listen to everything I say." Orimura-sensei raised an eyebrow. "You know, a personal IS can understand and form a relationship with its owner. I can understand that this could aid in forming such bonds, but if you get too close, it could turn out negatively for you. What if your IS were to do something drastic because of all of the negative thoughts you spilled into it? I recommend that you put some distance between yourself and it."

Though he saw it coming, Douglass couldn't help but frown. However, he bowed politely. "Very well, sensei. I will not act so recklessly anymore." Chifuyu nodded. "Good. Now then, was there something you were here for?" Approaching the computer, Jason typed out some code and observed as some information appeared on the screen. He nodded, and exited from the menu. "I'm done. Everything's set. All of the ISes should be ready for practice when class starts." Frowning, Orimura-sensei looked at the screen. "What did you just check?" Douglass turned away from the screen. "I was looking to see how the machines were feeling. They are almost life-like with emotions, and I noticed that when the system was hacked the other day, they started acting distressed. They seemed to have calmed down about now, but you can't be too careful. Make sure the students don't do anything rash with them, even the training ones."

Orimura-sensei watched him as he exited the room, still frowning. The boy was a strange one. He seemed to be looking to IS machines more that to people for comfort, even with his claim that he felt that piloting them was a curse. It was as if he was trapped there, seeing the IS system as the only thing that kept him alive. She sighed. This was a problem. No doubt he had gone through severe psychological trauma that caused this feeling of dependence. He would have to learn to move forward, or he would be trapped like that forever, and that was a depressing thought.

* * *

It was immediately noticed by Mishima that Douglass seemed to lost the strange feelings he was having the other day. This brought a wave of relief over her, and she promised herself that she wouldn't strike out at Jason all day. The two of them ate breakfast in relative peace, Jason, as usual, not eating much. Kirino pointed that out at one point. "Hey, you're a guy, right? I thought guys eat a lot. Especially since you're American." Jason laughed, munching on something. "I'm not like a lot of guys, as you may have noticed." Shrugging, the girl reached over and plucked some food from his tray, eating it herself. "Well, I'm hungry. And if you're not fond of eating, you won't miss that." Douglass only smiled, shaking his head.

As the two were heading to the main building, Jason instinctively turned his head toward the hill with the tree on it. He gulped slightly at the sight before him. There she was, the girl he had seen before, hidden in the shadows of the leaves on the treetop, staring straight at him. Douglass nudged Mishima. "Hey, take a look at that tree over there for a second." Kirino looked over, staring at the tree. "Why? I don't see anything. Did you notice something weird?"

Douglass frowned, looking up. The girl was definitely still there. He spoke up, "No, I just thought I saw someone there for a moment and wondered what they were doing there." Mishima's eyebrows raised. "Someone? You think there's a student around there?" She looked back to the tree. "Should we check it out?" Douglass shook his head. "Nah. I'm certain whoever is there, if there is someone, can take care of themselves." He looked back to the tree, where the girl had not moved an inch. "Come on, we'll be late."

Mishima looked at the tree, with an interested look on her face. She gave a slight nod to herself, thinking that she would check it out later. If someone was hiding or something out there, she would be the one to find out who and why.

* * *

Several days passed uneventfully. After a while, the classes began to prepare for the approaching tournament. In this event, the classes would battle within themselves, then the finalists from each class would battle each other. Douglass was usually silent about it, but, inside, he was worrying. He understood that many people in his class alone were extremely skilled pilots, especially Orimura and Shinonono, who piloted 4th-generation IS machines. Relying on things such as Overdrive Pulse would be nearly impossible in other battles, such as a battle against Blue Tears, which never made contact with an opponent's IS.

All of this preparation, along with Douglass's preoccupation with thinking about the lockdown override and the enigmatic Blind Fate left him with little spare time. When he did have such time on his hands, he would usually spend time on the roof of the main building, looking out at the ocean. He never objected to anyone joining him, but didn't provide much conversation. Anyone could tell that he was always thinking about something, and an considerate person would leave him alone to his musings.

One evening, he decided to visit the hangars. He needed to take a look at Canon Splitter and see if he could polish up its systems, see if he could figure out anything about any special programming it had. That evening, after training, he told the others that he would stay at the docking room for a little while, and not to wait up for him. He entered the hangars quietly, and sat down in front of the docking computer. He called up the Canyon Splitter information menu, and from there accessed its systems. He looked the whole thing over carefully, attempting to find a spare line of code, a strange programming quirk, anything that could give him an extra edge. So engrossed he was in his work that he did not notice the presence behind him until it spoke.

"Jason Douglass?" The boy spun around, standing at the same time, and slammed his knee against the table. "Agh! Jeez!" He muttered to himself, distracting himself from the minor injury to look up at who had spoken. The figure was a woman, about as old as Chifuyu, with her long, black hair in a thin ponytail. She was dressed in fairly sleek clothing, making her look fairly nimble with her tall, thin form. A smug smile played on her face. "You're supposed to be the genius? You certainly don't act the part, although you work a computer fairly quickly, if just now was anything to go by."

Douglass gritted his teeth. He didn't like the tone she was using. It sounded mocking, as if she was taunting him. He wouldn't fall for it. "Who are you?" His voice was clear and loud, ringing with authority. In fact, it even impressed him. He'd never really spoken like that. The woman chuckled. "I'm the one whose little game you ruined a couple of days back. You know, when you overrode the commands I put in?" Jason understood. "You're the hacker. You're pretty stupid to come back here, aren't you? I'd have expected such a thorough person to not make foolish moves." He gestured to the computer behind him. "You know how quickly I work. I could put this place in lockdown and you'd have nowhere to run. Or, I could just call my IS. It doesn't feel good to be stepped on, trust me."

The hacker crossed her arms. "Really? If you locked down the area, what would you do then? You couldn't exit this place afterwards, and I doubt that you would be able to catch me even if you could. And I know all about your IS. It's too slow. I have one too, you know." Damn it, he should have guessed that she was a pilot as well. "All right...well, what are you here for? Why would you make yourself seen after what you did? Were you expecting a warm welcome from me? Do you even know what you did to the IS systems here? Just getting everything straightened out was a bother." Grinning, the woman shrugged. "I could care less about your pitiful IS machines. I'm only here to pass something on to you, Douglass. Your mind has attracted the attention of my employer. Said employer was the one who provided me with the codes for the time-activated lockdown. I watched them create it with my own eyes. The boss is one hell of a mind, too, you see? And they are interested in your help. That was what the little test was all about. Take your time to think about it." She pulled out a card and tossed it onto the floor in front of Douglass. "Just activate it when you've made your choice. Don't keep us waiting."

Jason looked at the card for a moment, then burst into laughter. "Wow! Seriously? How can you even expect me to agree to aid a pathetic group of hackers, even if you are incredibly capable. I mean, I thank your boss for the compliment, but, as you know, I'm no idiot. I wouldn't ever agree to thi-" He was interrupted, however, by the woman. "If you take too long, or refuse the deal after using the card, the boss will activate a program that will forever destroy the systems of every IS in this hangar area. Also, if the boss finds out that you've told somebody about this deal, bye-bye to your little metal buddies. So, think quickly. Now, if there is nothing left to say, I'll go." She turned to leave, but Douglass stopped her.  
"Wait a moment. Your boss...are they Blind Fate?" The woman blinked. "What are you talking about, kid? I've never heard of a Blind Fate before. You must have mistaken us for someone." She shook her head, running off. Douglass was speechless. He thought for a moment about everything that had been told to him, when suddenly the implications of the threat at the end of the offer hit him. Douglass fell to his knees.

* * *

That night, Douglass skipped dinner. He didn't speak to anyone at all, and only muttered responses to Laura when she asked him whether it was ok to use the shower and when she offered him a good night. He was fairly silent the next day as well. Mishima was worried, but didn't say much. She remembered that he had days like this even in the old times, and that all he needed was some time to cool off. Douglass, however, was going through an extreme amount of internal turmoil. He couldn't possibly join the hacker group, but to refuse would mean the death of his Canyon Splitter, as well as countless other IS machines. How could he live, being responsible for such a thing?

Finally, he decided. He knocked on the door to Chifuyu's office, and once the door had been opened to him, he tossed the card on her desk. "I'm going to use this soon. It is an invitation for me to join the same hackers who played with the system several days back. If I refuse it, they will destroy the systems of any IS connected to the hangars. However, this only goes with the ones that are connected. Therefore, I would like to ask a favor of you." Orimura looked at the card, listening to his story, then looked up at him, frowning. "What do you have in mind, Douglass?" Jason crossed his arms. "I would like you, along with a small group of others, to manually disconnect every IS in the hangar from the main system. Once this is done, I will activate the invitation-" Chifuyu nodded, understanding, "And you'll refuse, but nothing will happen?" Douglass shook his head. "No. I would like to see just how good these people are. I'm going to accept. If they know I'm lying, they will activate their code, but nothing will happen. If they don't figure out that anything is wrong, I can infiltrate and destroy them from the inside out. Is that a solid enough plan?"

Blinking, Orimura-sensei chuckled. "You're always ahead of the game, aren't you, Douglass? All right, I'll get together a group and disconnect all the IS machines tonight. For safety, we will not contact you through the system, but I will send a person to deliver the message personally when we are done." To her surprise, Jason fell to his knees and bowed deeply. "Thank you very much." He whispered. "I was unsure if I could relate this story to anyone. When I received this horrible card, I just felt so powerless...it was horrid, beyond anything imaginable..."

He was interrupted from his thoughts by a powerful smack to the head from behind. He turned slowly, and held his breath when he saw who it was. Ichika, surrounded by his usual group, was standing at the door, and in front of the whole crowd stood Mishima, brandishing a book in her hands. "You dumbass! You should have told us first! You need to learn to depend on people, Douglass! Hey! Why in hell are you laughing, idiot?"

Jason raised his head, and sputtered in between fits of laughter, "Because it's impossible for me to cry."

* * *

Mishima walked into the control room with Orimura-sensei. "All right, Douglass, all of the IS machines have been manually disconnected." She looked down at her arms. "That was way harder than I thought it would be. It better be worth it, Douglass." The boy nodded, though he was focused on the screen. "Mishima, if you had not done it, all of our IS systems would be destroyed. A little extra work is better than that, right?" He pulled out the card. "In any case, we should be ready. So, without further ado..." He swiped the card and entered some code into the system, and the screen turned red, with a stream of words appearing on it. Douglass took a while typing some stuff out, with more and more code appearing every time he did something. Eventually, however, all of the code disappeared, and the words "Answer? YES, NO" appeared. Douglass sighed, and punched a key.

For a moment, nothing happened. Then, a garbled voice came from the computer. "You made a good choice, Douglass. However, your Academy could be an annoyance. Therefore, we will be destroying your IS machines anyways. Please, do not take it personally. Work is work." After a few moments of hushed silence, the voice resurfaced. "Around now, the entire hangar's worth of IS machines should have been ruined. You had no chance of saving them. Do not worry. You have nobody to blame but yourself. A program will soon activate for you that will give you further instruction. Welcome to the fold." The computer screen went blank, then reverted to the original blue color.

There was silence. Then, Douglass turned around. "Somebody, check on the hangars! We don't want something unexpected to have happened!" Chifuyu began to move to the door. "I'll go. You two, watch the computers." As she disappeared, Jason collapsed into a chair, cradling his head in his arms. His stomach felt twisted for some reason. It was a horrible feeling, like something terribly wrong was just waiting to happen. However, he was snapped from his feelings by Mishima's startled cry. Looking up, he saw that the screens had gone a familiar gray color, and huge green lettering was seen on every computer.

"**YOU IMPRESS YET AGAIN, JASON DOUGLASS. YOU HAVE OVERCOME THIS TEST WITH SKILL AND AS MUCH EFFICIENCY AS COULD BE EXPECTED. I WILL CONTINUE OBSERVING. THE PATH TO THE LIGHT LIES BEFORE YOU."**

**-BLIND FATE**


End file.
